Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-08-20
"IAKE AWAY THAT SNAKE y,
Delirium Tremens Patients and How
They are Treated.

Take away that snake-there is an
other one comingw
The cry was raised by dissipated speei-
men of the hard drinker whose eonfine-
ment in the Bellevue Hospital cells was
the sequel of a grand spree that had lasted
more than fortnight
Observing the cells being all pretty well
filled, Journal reporter suggested to the
physician in charge whether delirium tre-
mems patients were more frequent at this
season than during the rest of the year
Why this is the worst part of service
Just now" remarked the physician "our
cells and the alcoholic ward are always
crowded in July and up till the middle of
August. It's the Fourth of July that does
it,
al thought it was whisky as a general
thing" commented the newspaper man,
anxious to vindicate the good name of the
national holiday
The doctor laughed good -humoredly.
Yes, you are right. But in explaining
the phenomenon Of this large increase of
delirium tremens cases we can trace them
nearly all to the Fourth of July. Many
people who manage the year around to
keep their load down to average proper
tions are carried away with enthusiasm
and rum on the Fourth. They don't come
here the next day, though"
Why not ?"
"Well, the symptoms won't develop in
so short time. The drinker wants to
keep up the racket for week or there
abouts. That's why our busy season does
not set in until the second week of July.
The hot weather is also powerful agent
in breeding snake visions and similar hal
lucinations in an alcoholic brain. A great
many of our cases are old stagers They
have gone through the mill so often that
they understand the premonitory symp-
toms and come here of their own accord to
get fixed up"
How do you treat these cases, doctor ~
"The principal object is to induce Sleep"
explained the disciple of Hsculapius. "A
Jim. jammer' is continually wakeful and
his muscles are continually twitching.
Eminent scientists have lately argued that
instead of calling the disease delirium ire
mems it should be called delirium vigilis
lwakeful). The sure sign that patient
will recover is when he drops into a quiet
sleep. When first received into the hos
pitai the alcoholic victim is generally vio-
lent and must be tied in bed or placed in a
straight Jacket He has all sorts of hallu-
cinations, though not necessarily Of an I'M
pleasant character. The most common one
is the belief that he is prosecuted and fol-
lowed by some imaginary enemy. Yet the
brain is very active and the patient will
speak long sentences and not mere mutter-
ing sounds as in typhoid fever. In one pc
culiar instance the whisky-worste,i patient
imagined himself necessarily fired upon by
line of.soldiers.
The sleep which is. SO important for a
cure" continued the doctor, must, as a
rule, be superinduced by administering
hypnotic medicines. A bromide of potas-
SUM mixture is always kept on hand in
large quantity and given during the dav
Then we have more powerful dose for
night service. 1t is mainly composed of
bromide, capsicum and digitalis, and in
hospital parlance termed the ID. T. MKT
ure.' There is third composition used
in certain cases a. hypnotic The ingre-
dients are tinetme Of hops and valerian."
And how long does it take to brace up
man with the delirium tremens ?" was
asked.
"All The way from day or two till a
month. There is one patient now in the
Ctils VINO HIS Deen unuer treatment Tor
four weeks. The poor fellow is rapidly
improving, however and if he could give
the dark bottle wide berth in future he
might get along well enough. But they
don't do it."
Moralizing on this subject the doctor
touched upon the worst feature of the
"iim-jam" business. Within a certain pc
Rod the drinker has brought himself down
to the level of chronic alcoholic poisoning.
or what in the profession is designated as
SWEET BRAIN"
And how are they cylred?'
They are not cured" replied the medi-
cal man, tersely "Very often they have
complication of diseases, of which pneu-
monia is the most prominent The wet
brain man lapses into stupor followed
by coma, and that's the wind up of the
whole business
An ambulance rolled up in front of the
hospital stoop as the reporter was about to
leave. An emaeiated human shape wrapped
in rags WAS lifted out and carried into the
alcoholic ward
Wet brain, wemarked the physician.
guess that is his last call"